James River and Kanawha Canal

The James River and Kanawha Canal is a partially built canal in Virginia, located in the city of Richmond. The canal was surveyed and planned by George Washington, and construction began in 1785. It was an expensive project which failed several times financially and was frequently damaged by floods, and it was largely financed by the state, being only half completed by 1851. Soon, railroads overtook the canal as a far more productive mode of transportation, and it was abandoned after flooding in 1877. It was largely dismantled by the new Richmond and Allegheny Railroad, which laid tracks on the former towpath. In 1971, the canal was registered as a historic place.